Obituary of Vernice Grace Adeline Soderquist

Verne Soderquist, a resident of Fort St. John, B.C; formerly of Dawson Creek, B.C. passed away on Wednesday, November 13, 2013 in Fort St. John at the age of 87 years. Vernice Grace Adeline Soderquist, known to all as "Verne" was born on December 17th, 1925 to William and Eva Tribe in the small farming community of Leslieville, Alberta. Verne grew up in the community of Whitelaw, Alberta where she, her brother Bud, and parents owned a homestead outside of town. As a young girl, Verne learned the true meaning of hard work as many of the farming duties were performed by hand, along with the help of their animals. Her father taught her to be somewhat of an inventor, as they created and adapted upon various tools to help make the work a bit easier. Although things may have been a challenge financially, Verne had many joyful memories of her childhood that she loved to share. She rode horses, played baseball, and enjoyed attending school. Verne and her family would sometimes go pick berries along the banks of the Peace River, and when she arrived at the river valley for the first time, she instantly fell in love with the breathtaking scenery. Around the year 1937, one of Verne's favourite childhood memories was when she got the once in a lifetime experience to ride in an open cockpit biplane, piloted by Stan Warren. After that she was hooked, and absolutely loved all airplanes and would enjoy reminiscing often about her experience. When Verne was about 24 years old, she began work at the Hudson Bay Company based out of Peace River, Alberta and later in the early telephone offices as a switchboard operator. At that time, her mode of transportation to get to and from work was the Canadian Coachways bus. One summer night, she was headed to work on the bus and a terrible forest fire had broken out. The road became engulfed in smoke, and it was very difficult for the bus driver to see. As the only passenger on the bus, Verne sat at the front with the driver to help him navigate through the smoke. That bus driver was Oscar Soderquist, whom she married on June 24th, 1950. The way they met depicted exactly how they were as a couple; a team. Verne and Oscar went on to build a wonderful life together. They settled in Grande Prairie, Alberta and decided to start their family. On May 14th, 1951 they welcomed their first child, Merv, into the world. Two years later, on March 27th, 1953 they welcomed Heather and on October 13th, 1958 welcomed Randy into their lives. In 1961, Verne and Oscar moved to Dawson Creek, BC where they purchased another hobby farm and eventually went on to own and operate the Greyhound bus depot. They worked side by side running a successful business until their retirement from Greyhound in 1978. Verne was blessed with 8 grandchildren: Angela, Danielle, Paul, Stephanie, Lana, Ryan, Kelsey, and Morgan as well as 2 great grandchildren: Abby and Bennett. In 1984, Verne was given the great honour of being named artist of the year by the south peace art council. She had joined the council in 1979 when her life became a bit less hectic, and from then on had participated in various workshops and events. In 1997, Verne hosted her own art show in which she called "Generations". This art show included beautiful work by her and Heather, and even featured some art created by her grandkids. Art was a way in which Verne could express herself, and luckily for all of us, a way to leave us all with a beautiful legacy of what was dear to her heart. A memorial service was held on Friday, November 22, 2013 at 1:00 pm from Reynars Funeral Chapel, Pauline Haycock officiated. Interment followed in the Brookside Cemetery. For friends so wishing, donations may be made in memory of Verne to the Peace Villa Care Home, 8407-112 Avenue, Fort St John, and B.C. V1J-0J5 Special memories of Verne presented by Verne's Granddaughter; Lana Soderquist. Very Respectfully Reynars Funeral Home & Crematorium